


Brotherly Bonding Time

by Tell_me_about_it_shug



Series: And it's in the quality of the Gods [11]
Category: Ancient Greek Religion & Lore
Genre: Ares is socailly inept but thats okay, Ares is socially awkward lmao, Awkwardness, Brotherly Bonding, Gen, Hair Braiding, Hurt/Comfort, I wrote this for my owm reasons, Inaccurate Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, Social Anxiety, i love soft Ares, i suck at dialog
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-10
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-17 12:55:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,048
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29966709
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tell_me_about_it_shug/pseuds/Tell_me_about_it_shug
Summary: "Do you want me to braid your hair?"Ares blinks once, twice and then three times."Uhh" he says intelligentlyOr: Brotherly bonding with Ares and Apollo ft Aphrodite
Relationships: Aphrodite/Hephaestus(briefly mentioned), Apollo/Hyacinthus(briefly mentioned)
Series: And it's in the quality of the Gods [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1607104
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	Brotherly Bonding Time

"Would you like me to braid your hair?"

Ares would have thought Apollo was mocking him if he weren't literally bouncing in place and looking at him so earnestly. 

They were relaxing on Olympus, drinking sweet wine and eating honeyed fruits. It was quiet for once; his father was out and only Apollo and Aphrodite were lounging drowsily and quiet. His mother was around here somewhere, the only reason he was here was because she asked for him; it had been awhile since he saw his mother last, caught up in the brutality of war amongst the mortals.

Aphrodite perks up from where she was laying, interest replacing drowsiness. Apollo had his fingers twisted in her hair, weaving an intricate braid laced with pink and gold flowers, gilded combs and brushes and pearled pins and delicate flowers sitting on the table beside them. Ares blinks slowly. once, twice.

Apollo laughs lightly. "You were staring." He says amused.

Aphrodite nods vigorously, shimmying to sit up in excitement. "Yes! let us braid your hair!"

It had been forever since he wore his hair in braids. His hair was red; ginger and bright like wheat in the summer sun and it was long, coiled into a tight bun. 

"Uh..." Ares says intelligently.

Aphrodite snorts, not unkindly, though it makes his hackles rise. The truth is he would like his hair braided but he would be awkward admitting it. He is bad at talking when its not about war; his tongue doesn't remember what its like to speak softly. His father thinks social decorum is wasted on him and Ares isn't going to waste his breathe telling that horrid man how he ruined him when he named him God of war. War is all he knows now, anger and the taste of blood. 

"It's alright if you don't want me to." Apollo says though the look on his face shows that it's definitely not as okay as he says it is. Aphrodite tilts her head to the side like she knows what he's thinking.

"No!" Ares says, more like shouts, thoroughly embarrassing himself. Apollo's eyebrows raise.

"You do want me to braid your hair?" There's hope in his voice and Ares doesn't understand why Apollo is so eager to braid his hair.

Not trusting himself to open his mouth again he just nods, stiff and stoic. Maybe social decorum is wasted on him.

"Hell yeah, brother bonding time!" Apollo says, and he beams, bright and golden like the sun god he is. Ares squints at the sight of him.

Aphrodite squeals excitedly. "Ooh I have the perfect accessories for your hair!" she claps her hands excitedly. "I'll be right back!" and then she's gone.

Apollo pats the spot next to him invitingly. "Come sit here!" He says, shimmying in his excitement.

He sits against Apollos knees awkwardly. Lately that's all he's been; awkward. His burgeoning relationship with Hephaestus leaves him feeling unbalanced and new. His knees are pushed against his chest and he's sure he looks like a fool but Apollo sits behind him easily. 

"You have such pretty hair." He says softly, undoing his bun and running his fingers through the curly locks. Ares just grunts, flustered and awkward. Apollo takes one of the pretty combs and parts hair it in three different places.

"No need to be so awkward." Apollo says, laughing lightly. "Relax, I wont bite."

"Sorry." He says gruffly. Apollo just pats his shoulder appeasingly and oddly enough, it draws a bit of the tenseness from his shoulders.

Apollo's hands twist in his hair, braiding against his scalp and down his back with practiced expertise and speed, tugging lightly here and there. 

By the time Aphrodite returns with tiny pins decorated with blue flowers and gilded baby's breath and pearl pins wrapped in gold, Ares is relaxed and his limbs are loose. She sets her pins and flowers on the table, eager to get her fingers in Ares hair.

"Your hair is so long." She exclaims softly. gliding her fingers through his hair. "This is going to be so much fun!"

Aphrodite talks about Hephaestus, how he made the pins and gilded flowers just for her and Apollo talks about Hyacinthus and how sweet he is. Ares is happy for the noise and even happier when they don't actually talk to him. It's one thing to party with people and a whole other thing to spend time with them; someone pressed against his side and back, seemingly enjoying his presence. He's barely spoken and he feels drained. 

Talking to Hephaestus was different in a way he couldn't explain. Hephaestus was his little brother and despite their rough beginning, talking to him was like breathing clean air for the first time. 

"We're done!" Apollo exclaims and Ares doesn't know how long he was lost in thought or how long he's been sitting there, half asleep and heavy limbed. 

Aphrodite hands him a mirror and he looks into it longer than necessary. A group of braids are coiled atop his head, the rest falling loose in hundreds of little intricate braids, blue flowers and pearls peaking out amongst an ocean of red. Its beautiful, like when he was young and he doesn't have the words to describe it.

"Do you like it?" Apollo asks and Ares face must give something away because Apollo is smiling like he already knows the answer. Ares mouth refuses to work so he settles with a jerky nod.

"Ares." Hera is immaculately put together today, regal and queenly and golden. 

Immediately, all eyes are on Her. She acknowledges Aphrodite with a nod and ignores Apollo altogether. 

"We'll be having tea in the garden today." She says and she quirks an eyebrow at him and he realizes Apollo is leaning on him. 

He removes himself from Apollo and pats his arm gently. "I want to do this again." he says and Apollo looks like he could faint from happiness.

He joins his mothers side and offers her his arm. 

"What was happening here?" She asks not quite as nonchalant as she probably would have liked, a bit of bitterness seeping through. She doesn't care much for the children of Leto.

"Ah," Ares says, and then loud enough that Apollo can hear him, "Just some brotherly bonding"

**Author's Note:**

> Lmao this is my first story of 2021. I started writing something for Io but it was sad and I wanted to start off the year happy so I wrote something quick and sweet. I really love Ares and hes fun to write.


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